Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1887-10-06

of q dark cloud stampede ten thousand
butlaloes. have known the howl of n
wolf to seq big herd in motion. A flash
OF Lightning or clap OF thunder seemed
70 scare them half~to death, although you
would argue that they would get used to
1t. And once started, nothing but a
mountain will turr the great wave aside
and only exharstion would bring them
back TO tac;- senses. After herd had
fairly started, terror seemed tc take pos
session of them, and it was the devil
seiSe the last one. Then il was woe 20
the pioneer or hunter who happened to
be in their path without grove to shell
ter him. / saw in 1867, on the Loup fork
OF the Platte river, an emigrant camp
which had been run over by a stampede
! There had been seven wagons and twenty
, four people, with about thirty head of
! horses and cattle. The rushing, terror
stricken herd struck the camp just at
| day break and WAS iifteen or twenty
minutes passing. Only one human be
/ ing escaped man who was carried OF
on the back OF buffalo, aud left at
/ spot ten miles away. Not an animal was
/ left not vehicle escaped destruction
] saw the site of the camp about noon OF
that day, and there wasn't a piece OF any
OF the heavy wagons which J could not
have carried off under my arm. The peo-
4 pie had been tramped into the earth
anpihilated wiped out. The remains
could scarcely be recognized es those OF
human beings.
! But rs TO my own adventures, There
were four hunters of Us in the locality
spoken of, killing various kinds of game
and doing little trapping, and though
} thprA t.1nstV ~ Il III f,,t e., af
! they did nos get on 20 us fora week We
had a camp on small run or creek, with
n grove OF about dozen trees for shelter
and about two miles TO the north was
| spring and another grove. The Iudians
/ hadn't got hold of Wiuchesters and knew
nothing of reyolvers in those days, and o
war party of less than twenty five would
have hesitated 20 attack four hunters
We kept OR eyes open, however, and one
was ON the watch while the other three
slept We had been in camp nine or ten
days and constantly surrounded by buffa
loes, when, one afternoon, just before
sunset, itwas apparent from the actions
OF tho animals that something was in tho
wind. The attachments were consolida-
ting, all stray bulls joining the herds, and
almos. every buffalo ceased feeding and
acted anxious and i'll az ease. That ment
Indians. Curious rs you may think il
the presence OF ar Indian will disturb the
budaloes sooner than that of the white
man.
have spoken of the second grove. rt
was composed OF few stunted cotton
woods and Was ia IA sense shelter.
Now, this is what happened during the
night. war party OF about thirty Eve
Indians took up their position in this
little grove, calculating TO sweep down on
Us at daylight and carry our camp by
storm Along toward daylight they noun
ted and rode softly down 20 within a
quarter OF mile of us and there waite
for day 10 break. They woald be obser-
we'd by the sentnal, but would make n
rush aud carry the camp. Well, IL was
just coming day, and i've minutes more
would have discovered them 20 tho sen
tinal when the big herd which had been
gathering to the north OF VA began TO
stampede. The seminal heard them nj
7 the first start Off, and reused as up and by
the time we had our guns IN hand we
coHlo see the Indian war party They
knew what was up better than we did
but they we're caught between two fires
and se chief was too slow Witied for the
occasion. His policy should have been
TO charge us. lie might have lost six or
eight men, but the shelter Of the grove
would haze save the rest and given them
our scalps to bot, lie might not have
known our strength and so after epcndt
ing the valuable minutes in reflection he
ordered the party OFF 10 the left. The
only hope they could have was in riding
across the face OF this herd, but that was
out OF the question. The front covered
! FN..s, a., \ ~
seven miles, and the Indians mad barely
got started when the first buffaloes were
in sight. They came thicker shan bees
their heads down, horns rubbing and feet
making great clatter, and while we
saw the war party swallowed up in that
great heaying sen Of animal life. A mo
ment later an old bull dashed into and
through the grove, and every man sprsng
for n tree. As was climbing up my feet
struck bOffalo on the back and before
was secure only the five largest trees in
the grove were standing. All others had
been uproeted by contact and three Grip
pied animals we're lying on the ground
3 beneath me. Our horses, camp, every
thing went in two minutes. The noise
was ten times more deafning than hur.
ricane az sea, and ( 4e terror Of the ani-
mails was something appalling.
have told you that the front of this
herd was seven miles across. You can
Judge what the depth must have been
when tell that they were three hours *
passing. Every animal was running for
his life and his pace could not have been
lesf than ten miles an hour. / shouldn't
When tae last one had passed US the coun
, try about US was sight to behold. There
was al least one hundred and fifty dead
o. crippled animals in sight and there.
was a swath seven miles wide which hao
cut the very life out Of the prairie. OF
all our compaign equipage we could not
find one solitary article Of wood, or iron
. or leather All our horses had been
tram pied under within less than a mile OF
the grove, and their bodies we're sights
: no one could look at twice. We spreac
, out TO sec what fate had befallen the In
dams, and we did not have TO go far
They had been knocked down and STAN
ped into the earth. A member Of the
) the same tribe, with whom | talked a year
later, told me that not one survived, anG
the loss had almost demoralized the
LII.